Two books that influenced my life

“Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.”
— Martin Luther King, Jr.

“Hold me now; it’s hard for me to say I’m sorry; I just want you to stay…”
— Chicago, “Hard to Say I’m Sorry”

I play the piano in a Catholic church every Sunday morning.  (I consider myself spiritual, not religious.  I have some thoughts regarding my own faith and beliefs; this might be another article subject for another time.)  This morning’s scripture and homily had to do with forgiveness.  As the good Father was going through his homily this morning, for whatever reason, two books that influenced my life suddenly came into my mind.  While these two books are only partially related to forgiveness, they nevertheless made me think about how life should be lived.  I credit these books with teaching me about life’s lessons and helping me grow.

The first book is How To Stop Worrying and Start Living by Dale Carnegie.  Although Dale Carnegie wrote this book back in 1948, all the principles about which he wrote are still applicable today.  Anyone who’s taken the Dale Carnegie training courses will recognize the principles outlined in the book (I, myself, have taken the Dale Carnegie course; if you have an opportunity to take the course, I recommend it highly).  In his book, he talks about how worry can make you unhappy, adversely affect your health, and cause stress in your life.  I’ll admit that I don’t always stick to his principles (I’m human, after all), but his principles make perfect sense, and they make for a good fallback whenever things aren’t going my way.

The second book is Tuesdays with Morrie by Mitch Albom.  When Mitch discovers his old mentor, Morrie, is dying from Lou Gehrig’s disease, he makes it a point to visit him each Tuesday (hence, the book’s title) until Morrie succumbs to the disease.  With each visit, Mitch’s old mentor teaches him about life’s lessons, leaving Mitch a changed man.  It’s a good read that provides a good perspective about what life is about.

These are two books that, I believe, can make the world a better place, and I recommend them highly.  Hopefully, they’ll influence you the way that they influenced me.

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